Monthly Archives: December 2016

Tuesday of the 2nd week of Advent (Year I)
Saint Nicholas, Bishop
Isaiah 40:1-11 | Psalm 95(96):1-3,10-13 | Matthew 18:12-14

Isaiah 40:1-11 instantly reminded me of Michael Joncas’ A Voice Cries Out, which is based on this very passage:

“Prepare a way for the Lord, make straight a highway for God.” I can’t help but think that the words are meant as a reminder to prepare ourselves to receive our Lord and Saviour when He comes again, by bulldozing all “crooked paths” of temptation and sin from our lives, and laying down a single straight 8-lane spiritual autobahn, the Way of Truth and Love.

This is the place, and now is the time to renew our commitment to Christ…for we do not know the hour when the Son of Man is coming.

Wait for the Lord, whose day is near;
Wait for the Lord, keep watch, take heart!

Amen.

Monday of the 2nd week of Advent (Year I)
Isaiah 35:1-10 | Psalm 84(85):9-14(Advent) | Luke 5:17-26

But as the crowd made it impossible to find a way of getting him in, they went up on to the flat roof and lowered him and his stretcher down through the tiles into the middle of the gathering, in front of Jesus. Seeing their faith he said, ‘My friend, your sins are forgiven you.’ (Luke 5:19-20)

Oh, to have friends who are willing to put themselves out for your health, or when you’re in despair and thinking of ending it all, or when you’re just in need of some friendly company.

Then again, the best way to get such friends is to be such a friend to others.

Just saying.

Lord, open our eyes to those around us who are suffering, who are in need of consolation or help. Give us the strength and conviction to stretch out our loving arms, and to offer whatever assistance we can. Amen.

2nd Sunday of Advent (Year A)
Isaiah 11:1-10 | Psalm 71(72):1-2,7-8,12-13,17 | Romans 15:4-9 | Matthew 3:1-12

A voice cries in the wilderness:
Prepare a way for the Lord,
make his paths straight. (Matthew 3:3, ref. Isaiah 40:3)

On paper, St. John the Baptist acted alone, but by faith, we know that God was always with him, as He is with all who remained faithful despite virulent opposition.

St. Paul confirms the second part when he tells the Romans:

Everything that was written long ago in the scriptures was meant to teach us something about hope from the examples scripture gives of how people who did not give up were helped by God. (Romans 15:4)

In modern times, we are beset on all sides by what’s best described as anti-faith, a prevailing sentiment that God doesn’t matter, that we need to look out for our own interests above all others, that anyone who shows consideration to others at some cost to himself is a sucker.

This is most vividly illustrated during a typical train journey, where almost everyone is either laser-focused on their mobile screens, or “ninja-napping” (leaning back with their eyes closed, seemingly in deep sleep but miraculously able to jump up and exit at their intended stop), or simply ignoring any boarding passengers, for fear they might see someone who needs a seat.

And when someone jumps up and cheerfully offers their seat, it sometimes seems that the mood of the other seat-hoggers actually darkens, almost as if they were hurling mental daggers at the benefactor for making them look bad.

When confronted with such general selfishness, it’s easy for us to lose hope, to let slip our Christian love for others and join the ranks of the me-firsters. It’s easy for us to sing hallelujah and serve the disadvantaged when surrounded by other believers, but when we’re alone among spiritual wolves, our courage usually takes a grievous pummeling.

It is then, brothers and sisters, that we need to redouble our efforts to break through our own reluctance to “rock the boat”, to do the right thing because it’s the right thing. It’s usually best to start by reminding ourselves that God is always with us, that it may be a good idea to let go of our own need to control our words and actions in such a situation, and let God’s love work through us to make things right.

But reaching such a state of trust in God requires frequent prayer, so that’s where we should start. I now begin my first journey every day with a rosary, through which I’ve felt a greater confidence over time that He has our best interests in mind, and a reduced reluctance to “get involved” with situations around me.

Would you care to join me in spirit?

Amen.

Saturday of the 1st week of Advent (Year I)
Saint Francis Xavier, Priest
1 Corinthians 9:16-19,22-23 | Psalm 116(117):1-2 | Mark 16:15-20

I do not boast of preaching the gospel, since it is a duty which has been laid on me (1 Corinthians 9:16)

Many of us forget that this is our duty too, to preach the Good News which we have received to everyone we meet.

We may not use verbal exhortation, but others would certainly see how we address each other with respect, being mindful of our words and actions. This sort of “show, don’t tell” is our individual sermon to the world.

And it’s especially when they see us fall short of the ideals of love, and how we recover from our failings, then they would decide that there’s something to this Word of God after all.

Lord, help us be inspired by St. Francis Xavier, and grant us a portion of the gifts with which he was filled to overflowing: the fire of the Holy Spirit, true compassion for the suffering, and a thirst for souls. Amen.

Friday of the 1st week of Advent (Year A)
Isaiah 29:17-24 | Psalm 26(27):1,4,13-14 | Matthew 9:27-31

I am sure I shall see the Lord’s goodness
in the land of the living. (Psalm 27:13)

Indeed, but what of the land of the dead, the land in which we now inhabit? The land of, as Isaiah described it:

those who gossip to incriminate others,
those who try at the gate to trip the arbitrator
and get the upright man’s case dismissed for groundless reasons. (Isaiah 29:21)

The land of those who have consciously rejected the call to love and, in doing so, oppressed others both physically and spiritually.

Isn’t it our calling to transform this world of darkness and despair into a land of light and hope, indeed the land of the living?

✞ ✞ ✞ ✞ ✞

I learned yesterday that the kidnapper of a local millionaire’s mother had been sentenced to life in prison, sparing him the alternative of death by hanging. Apparently, he surprised even the prosecutors by pleading in a letter to be put to death instead, and thereby to “repay his debt and be at peace,” especially to his aged mother who would no longer have anyone to take care of her.

Perhaps it was written in the heat of the moment, but to deprive his mother of her last (and perhaps only) begotten son strikes me as a perpetuation of pain rather than a repayment of debt. I guess this is why Mother Church takes a very dim view of suicide: the only pain it ends is that of the one who caused it all in the first place.

✞ ✞ ✞ ✞ ✞

As the oft-quoted saying goes, “where there’s life, there’s hope”. The converse is also true: when hope is lost, so too does the drive to live.

So let us offer all around us the precious gift of hope: an unexpected visit, a helping hand on a onerous task, or even a sympathetic ear and a kind word. Every day of our lives, but especially as we await the Advent of He who has been promised to us, we should encourage everyone (including ourselves), through our words and actions, to:

Hope in him, hold firm and take heart.
Hope in the Lord! (Psalm 27:14)

Amen.